Murder Suspect Accused of Eating Victim's Face, Eyeball Makes First Court Appearance

News By TooFab Staff |
FOX8

The suspect was allegedly found with "biological matter in his hair, mouth and on his clothing" after the grisly crime, before telling police something was "possessing" him.

Colin Czech, the Las Vegas man accused of eating the face of his victim, appeared in court on Wednesday -- where his lawyer requested a competency hearing.

"I've spoken to him, and I've determined that he is incompetent," public defender David Westbrook said during the brief appearance yesterday, during which Czech, 29, didn't utter a word and instead looked on from the side of the court.

Westbrook said he'd be filing paperwork to request a mental health evaluation, to see if Czech is competent to face charges. "The allegations obviously are very serious and what we've all read in the papers and seen in the news is very shocking," the attorney told FOX8 after the hearing, saying competency hearings are the next step in the process.

According to an arrest report obtained by FOX5, Czech was apprehended by police in the early morning hours of Sunday, April 28 near the Vegas strip.

Authorities responded to a call from a 7-Eleven employee who reported a man attacked a customer in the parking lot. He said the man began "banging [the victim's] head on the concrete" and "appeared paranoid, was screaming and yelling, and pacing in front of the business."

When officers arrived on the scene, they allegedly found the suspect kneeling next to the victim's head and "had blood on his face and hands" and "biological matter on his face, hands, mouth, and clothing." The victim, who was "missing a left eye and a left ear," was taken to a nearby trauma center, where he was pronounced dead.

Czech reportedly gave officers "a blank stare" at the scene, before "going in and out of consciousness" on the way to the hospital. He allegedly told authorities he was experiencing homelessness, had not slept for five days because something was "possessing him" and claimed the other man -- who did not appear to be armed -- "attacked me."

He also said he was "tweaking" and was fighting a "shape-shifter" -- claiming he heard voices who told him to kill the victim, who he didn't know previously. Per the arrest report, he also claimed a "higher power" helped him and he "used his teeth" to "eat [the victim's] eyeballs and ears."

Czech was booked on murder charges and is due back in court on Friday, May 24.